Nick Shaw

My musings on the path to pursuing a well lived life 🤘 Big 4 Consultant / Mindset Performance Coach / Jiu Jitsu white belt / ultramarathoner

[Nick Shaw @nickshaw_7]

Will be making a consistent effort to start posting musings here more often.

All things health, wellness, lifestyle, diet, jiu jitsu, lifting, travel, etc.

For those that don’t me, I’m at 26 year old based out of CO who is extremely passionate about documenting the process of things like training for ultramarathons, jiu jitsu competitions, foreign travel, starting a side hustle, and much more.

Stoked to have you along for the ride 🚀

[Nick Shaw @nickshaw_7]

The goal isn’t to avoid hardship and pain.

The goal is to become so robust and resilient that you can weather any hardship or pain that comes your way.

[Nick Shaw @nickshaw_7]

There’s an opportunity cost to everything in life.

Every action taken is inaction on an infinite amount of other actions.

This can be daunting. What if I’m missing out? What if I choose the wrong path? The wrong career? The wrong spouse? The wrong place to live?

These questions can be draining, which is why it’s so important when you’re young to develop your value system. What you believe / how you would like to spend your time / what’s important to you.

Writing out my values and listing out how I’d like to spend my time has been incredibly powerful in how I choose to spend my time. If it’s not a hell yes, it’s a no.

Highly recommend doing the same for yourself, you may end up with a whole lot less regrets later on.

[Nick Shaw @nickshaw_7]

Routines are critical to helping you reach your goals, until they aren’t.

Consistency and discipline with how you spend your time are the only ways to get good at anything. Your work. Your hobbies. Everyone knows this.

But after a while, this consistency can have diminishing returns if you don’t change it up a bit. Once your current routine isn’t serving you anymore, it’s time for a switch.

The solution is trying new things, traveling to new parts of the country, hanging out with different types of people to regain the energy and vigor for your old routine.

Sticking to the same routine when you aren’t excited for what you’re doing isn’t persistence, it’s just stupid.

As a routine oriented person, I’m realizing it’s important to know when to switch it up to surge past any plateaus I may be experiencing.

[Nick Shaw @nickshaw_7]

A helpful question to ask yourself to avoid future regrets:

“What can I do in this phase of life that I won’t have the opportunity to later on?”

Do those things.

Backpack through foreign countries, move states, sleep on couches at friends houses, try all different types of physical endeavors, sell all your things - these things that are only fair game in your 20s/early 30s.

The opportunities might not be there later on. Remember people regret inaction a lot more than action.

[Nick Shaw @nickshaw_7]

@tommyswriting Bro gets it.

[Nick Shaw @nickshaw_7]

These are the good ole days. Right now. Today. The highs and lows are all apart of it. Never forget this. It’s so easy to get consumed in the daily grind. Work. Obligations. Responsibilities. But these are the times you’ll reflect on when you’re old and gray. This was living. The opportunities. The serendipitous moments. The coffee with friends. The weekends spent skiing. The weeknight jiu jitsu classes. It’s all a gift. It’s all tremendously beautiful if you change your frame of mind. The more grateful I am for this life, the more this life gives me things to be grateful for. Relentless optimism is the only way.

[Noah Ryan @NoahRyanCo]

Depression and anxiety are signals

Signals that somethings not right. Biologically, psychologically, spiritually.

Some people are more sensitive to these signals than others (hence "genetic predisposition"). Some simply require more specificity.

The WORST thing you can do is drown out these signals. This is why anti-depressants and anxiolytics are net-negatives (aside from causing brain damage and suicidal ideation).

Drowning out the signal delays the inevitable. Its like covering up the check engine light with a piece of tape when what you really need is an oil change.

Don't run away from these signals, sit with them. Embrace them with curiosity. Figure out what they're telling you and act accordingly.

[Nick Shaw @nickshaw_7]

Haven’t been cross training (lifting, running, yoga, etc.) as much recently since I’ve been training more jiu jitsu.

The result:
- achy joints
- increased risk of injury
- less defined physique
- hard to keep on good weight

The conclusion:
- I need to be cross training 2-3x per week as maintenance and injury prevention more than anything else

[Nick Shaw @nickshaw_7]

The process is such a beautiful thing. But only in hindsight.

Skill acquisition.

Learning a language.

New hobbies. Etc.

They all suck at first. No way around it. But after a few months or years of struggle, you begin to look back at the process with a smile.

Something very beautiful about only you knowing all the blood, sweat, and tears that went into it. It’s a different type of respect you develop for yourself.

Keep at it.

[Nick Shaw @nickshaw_7]

Don’t let obsession with physical training make you forget about other aspects of your life that you might be neglecting.

Cool you have a six pack, but how are your finances?

Great you ran a marathon, but are you avoiding having difficult conversations with loved ones?

Yeah you’re great at jiu jitsu, but how’s your spiritual health?

Yes physical health is very important. But don’t overcompensate on one pillar and lose sight of all the other aspects of health & wellbeing (mental, emotional, social, spiritual, etc.)

[Nick Shaw @nickshaw_7]

Reminder that there is no such thing as job security. It’s an illusion.

People used to say working for the government is the path to stability and security.

Now decisions are being made by 20 year old college students who understand machine learning to make cuts and cancel federal contracts.

Life comes at you quick.

Preserve your agency and control what you can control.

[Nick Shaw @nickshaw_7]

Important to enjoy the negative emotions / feelings of failure when they arise.

That shit is rocket fuel.

If you allow yourself to experience them in their entirety and not try to escape them via food, drugs, scrolling, etc. you’ll find they’re extremely potent and are fuel to the fire for whatever comes next.

Experience the lows (1-3s) to really appreciate the highs (8-10s)🤘

[Nick Shaw @nickshaw_7]

If you can’t decide, the answer is no.

[Mr Overprayed @MrOverprayed]

You literally have zero competition

The average guy is addicted to porn, weed, video games and TikTok

He's godless and distracted by the world

What's your excuse?

Drink some coffee, pray and get to work

It doesn't get easier than this brother

This is your last chance...

[Nick Shaw @nickshaw_7]

I truly believe discipline is the highest form of self love and self respect.

It’s doing the thing now that you don’t want to do for the future, leveled up version of yourself.

This applicable to more than just working out. It’s skipping church on Sunday. It’s staying up too late binging a show. It’s scrolling too long instead of doing the work you said you’d do.

Lacking discipline? Staying up too late? Drinking too much? Skipping workouts?

Figure out, subconsciously, what is causing you to self sabotage. Why you’re experiencing feelings of low self worth.

The more we make the subconscious, conscious, the more we can be aware of these low states and override them.

Goodluck out there 🥷

[Nick Shaw @nickshaw_7]

There’s very few things a walk outside in sunlight without your phone can’t fix 🚶‍♂️

[The Babylon Bee @TheBabylonBee]

Fattest, Sickest Country On Earth Concerned New Health Secretary Might Do Something Different https://t.co/dS1Rolb6QX

[Nick Shaw @nickshaw_7]

The most slept on topic in modern psychology: The Halo Effect

Understand it and you’ll reap exponential benefits in all aspects of your life.

There’s a reason beauty rules the world.

[Nick Shaw @nickshaw_7]

If you become obsessed with a topic or hobby for just a few months and go all in on it, you’re already ahead of 99% of the population.

Experienced this running first marathon. Experiencing this with jiu jitsu now.

It literally takes 4 months max of head down shit eating and - boom - you’re above average in your hobby and top dawg when relating to the people who never even try.

In a world full of mediocrity, the world belongs to the obsessed.